Sporting Fingal 1 Mervue Utd 1MERVUE UNITED stunned holders Sporting Fingal as they came from behind to take them to a replay (to be decided) after the home side had captain Shaun Maher sent off.
Mervue might even have won the game with a terrific chance on 88 minutes. Substitute Evan Connolly crossed low into the area and captain Mike Tierney’s shot was smothered at the second attempt by Brendan Clarke.
It looked to be going well for Sporting when early pressure brought the lead on 14 minutes after Eamon Zayed turned home Conan Byrne’s low cross.
But Mervue battled back for a deserved equaliser on 36 minutes. Clarke came but didn’t claim Alex Lee’s corner. Enda Curran put the ball back across goal for Tierney to score with a firm header.
SPORTING FINGAL:Clarke; O'Brien, Maher, Browne, Fitzgerald; Finn, Williams, Dawson (McFaul, 66 mins); C Byrne, Zayed, Kirby.
MERVUE UNITED:Hanley; Crehan, Elwood, Walsh, Young (Farrell, 55 mins); Varley, Tierney, Lee; Gaffney, E Curran (Connolly, 65 mins), Hoban (Collins, 87 mins).
Referee:D Hanney (Dublin)
